Cancer Does Not Live Here

Author: Frank Dunne, Jr.
| Photographer: Anne

Circle of Health is not a medical clinic. It is a place for people who havevoluntarily decided to take ownership, partially or in full, of their health care.

The eyes are the window to the soul. They’re also a pie chart of the body. I learned that through a demonstration of iridology, which examines a person’s state of health by the colors, patterns and other properties of the iris.

According to Page Hamson, proprietor of the health food store, Circle of Health, “Iridology is based on the presumption each organ has a corresponding region in the iris. Thus, their proper functioning can be examined by simply examining the iris.”

Iridology and sclerology—the study of the red lines in the white of the eyes and how they relate to stress patterns in a person’s health—are two of the methods by which Hamson and Adele Alden help Circle of Health customers answer the question: What’s ailin’ me?

At first glance, Circle of Health appears to be a health food store just like any other. The shelves are stocked with all kinds of vitamins and herbal supplements, organic foods, herbal teas, and natural personal care accoutrements. At the smoothie and juice bar, Hamson and Alden serve up fresh “Prescription Smoothies” such as the Hibiscus High Blood Pressure Smoothie, Cinnamon Chai Smoothie for Diabetics, and Rainbow Ginger Smoothie for cancer patients.

But Hamson takes her business beyond selling products off the shelf. Rather, she sees it as her role in life to help people figure out what’s wrong with them and what can be done about it naturally. Especially when it comes to cancer.

“Cancer doesn’t live here,” declares Hamson. “What sets us apart from other stores is that we focus heavily on working with cancer patients.”

It is important to note that Hamson is not a doctor—nor does she claim to be—and Circle of Health is not a medical clinic. It is a place for people who have voluntarily decided to take ownership, partially or in full, of their health care.

For example, a cancer patient who goes to Circle of Health is usually not there at the direction of a physician. “It’s more people coming in who have been through chemotherapy, radiation, surgery, or whatever, and they are doing that, but want to do as much as they can. So they’re looking for other therapies as well,” said Hamson. “The information that I provide is for educational purposes. I don’t give medical advice or recommendations.”

And Now, For Something Completely Controversial…
A great deal of research has gone into vitamin B-17’s ability to treat—and even cure—cancer. The results of some of that research are positive.

On the other hand, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) views vitamin B-17 as an unapproved drug and restricts representations of the product as a cancer cure.

That said, this article’s purpose is not to endorse or oppose, prove or disprove, or represent as the position of this publication, any claims about the efficacy of vitamin B-17 (a.k.a. Laetrile or amygdalin) as a cure or treatment for cancer. Ditto for the FDA’s position on the subject.

As with all health related issues, it is your responsibility to do your own follow up and due diligence, and decide for yourself what you believe.

What does that have to do with Circle of Health? Glad you asked.

A very potent natural source of B-17 is the apricot kernel, which is the seed at the core of an apricot’s pit. It looks like a small almond, but all resemblance ends there. I had the opportunity to taste apricot kernels while visiting Circle of Health…and it wasn’t pretty: A hint of amaretto to start, with a profoundly bitter finish that hits like a sledgehammer and lingers. And lingers. And lingers…

Hamson explained that the necessary B-17 dosage is seven apricot kernels per day. “Cancer patients were coming in for the B-17 kernels,” she said, but the bitter taste made it difficult to persuade folks to scarf down seven a day. “People were complaining, but I wanted them to eat these because they’re so important. There is an entire nutritional protocol that goes with the B-17 apricot kernels, and we can help customers with that.”

One day a customer diagnosed with leukemia came into the store. “She was following mostly mainstream treatments,” said Hamson, “but her boyfriend had convinced her to try some natural remedies. I had a hard time getting her to eat the apricot kernels, though. I just wished there was a way I could make those things taste better so people would eat them.”

Call it divine inspiration, or simply an “AHA!” moment, either way something remarkable happened shortly thereafter. “Three days later, I sat up straight up in bed and I had the formula for these B-17 Bars,” said Hamson. The B-17 Bar is simply a chocolate bar made from Hamson’s proprietary formula. “Every single ingredient in there has cancer fighting properties,” she said. “I made my first batch and they were stunningly delicious!”

Each bar contains seven apricot kernels, so one a day gives the recommended B-17 dose, and the chocolate flavor offsets their bitterness and makes a B-17 regimen more palatable.

Hamson explained that she carefully researched every ingredient to make sure nothing would be harmful to a cancer patient while being plenty harmful to cancer.

We Are Traditional Medicine
Although Hamson realizes that she faces an uphill battle to gain mainstream acceptance for what much of conventional, or allopathic, medicine considers “alternative medicine,” she believes that the tide is slowly turning. “If you think about it,” she said, “natural cures and healing were around long before allopathic medicine. Herbs existed before drugs. We are traditional medicine.”

“People are self-educating themselves now—especially with all of the information that is available on the Internet,” said Alden. “They’re already pretty well-informed by the time they get to the doctor’s office or come in here.”

“I don’t think they (doctors) can deny nutrition anymore,” added Hamson. “Things just aren’t being cured with drugs. You might be able to get on an even keel with your symptoms, but they never go away. Drugs treat symptoms, but they don’t cure the cause.”The bottom line is educating people to help them get well and stay well. Circle of Health and other health food stores are not out to displace doctors or put anybody out of business.

“Some people want to do only natural therapies, and some people want to do both,” said Hamson. “Whatever they would like to do, we help them achieve their goals. We want to put healing and health in the hands of the people.”

About Us

In September of 2006, Celebrate Hilton Head (CH2) burst onto the scene with a fresh perspective on Hilton Head Island, Bluffton and the surrounding Low Country. At the helm was a team of young women (all under 30!) with no experience whatsoever in the publishing industry. The first year they made up the rules as they went along. CH2 (and CB2 – Celebrate Bluffton and Beyond), has evolved into a well-respected publication with over 150 advertisers and a distribution to over 47,000 locals and visitors each month.

Content ranges from Interesting Islander profiles and arts and entertainment pieces to food and wine topics and Hilton Head and Bluffton Business Profiles. CH2’s Bachelor of the Year Contest has blossomed into a greatly anticipated media event every year with viral marketing (i.e., Facebook, Twitter) contributing to the annual readership of those issues pertaining to the contest and over 700 people attending the Bachelor of the Year party held every October held at a local Hilton Head or Bluffton entertainment spot.

CH2 strives to give back to the community in which they have been so successful by sponsoring charitable events in both Hilton Head Island and Bluffton (Bluffton’s MayFest, put on by the Bluffton Rotary), donating editorial space to worthy organizations (Bold Strokes, Volunteers in Medicine, March of Dimes), and making the Hilton Head Island Rec Center the recipient of monies raised in conjunction with the Bachelor of the Year Contest.